The Mark
by Bubble-Lord
Summary: Harry meets an old foe, how far will he go to avoid his death?


**The Mark**

The only sound that could be heard was a pop as I appeared in the large clearing, clutching a dirty old pony figurine. Many heads turned to face me, curious but somewhat expectant as to my arrival. I was only paying attention to one face however, that of my new master.

I dropped the portkey and knelt down onto one knee on the damp wintery grass; it was so cold that my breath fogged the night air as I spoke. "My lord, I have come to join you."

The Dark Lord looked down at me, examining me with his piercing gaze. I knew that he would recognise me, even as concealed as I was in my dark cloak and countless charms to give myself an unrecognisable and uninteresting appearance. I knew that he could see past the disguises, and I prayed to Merlin that he would honour our agreement.

_I had been running through a deserted park, away from the houses, away from the Dursleys, when out of nowhere a hand grabbed me by the neck and thrust me against one of the few trees that sparsely dotted the park._

_I knew who it was before I saw his face; I could feel the inhuman coldness of his hand around my neck, the icy chill of his breath, the anger, fury and pure darkness that radiated off of him, oozing from every pore._

"_So, I have found you at last." He hissed into my ear._

_I ignored him, and tried to force my way out of his grasp, but it was impossible, he was much stronger than he looked. I inwardly cursed my stupidity, why hadn't I stayed at home like the Order wanted me to?_

"_What the bloody hell do you want Tom?" I asked, hoping to infuriate and distract him with the use of his given name._

_He simply smirked, "Oh you know what I want, I have wanted it for 15 years…..Your death."_

_Damn, why hadn't I at least brought my wand, I was so, so STUPID! But wait, maybe I could talk my way out of this one._

"_Why do you want me dead, again?"_

_Voldemort frowned, annoyed at my stupidity, "because of the prophecy of course, or hasn't your precious Dumbledore enlightened you to the contents of said prophecy yet?"_

"_Yeah, he has" I replied, "but the prophecy doesn't necessarily state that one of us HAS to kill the other, does it?" I tried to draw out every ounce of Slytherin cunning that I had, the Sorting Hat had suggested that I should be in Slytherin for a reason after all._

_Voldemort smirked, seeing past the attempted manipulation, but then he froze. Clearly my logic made more sense than I thought it did. "The power to vanquish the Dark Lord…" He muttered to himself, "but what about the desire?"_

_Voldemort stared at me with his calculating, unblinking gaze and suddenly I knew exactly what he was thinking; I was powerful enough to kill him, and I could potentially use this power to help him._

"_Join me," he began, his freezing breath leaving no trace in the chilly December air, "and I will spare your life. Swear your service, your faith, your life to me and I will help you to achieve power, to achieve fame, to achieve greatness."_

"_I already have more fame than I could ever want." I muttered under my breath. I wished that Dumbledore hadn't stupidly made me spend Christmas with the Dursleys. I hated them, they loathed me, and it was never going to change. I didn't care that it was the last Christmas that I would ever have the chance to spend with them before I went to live with Severus Snape, my newfound father._

_I couldn't take the Dark Mark, I couldn't join him. He was evil and everything that I stood against. But I didn't want to die, to leave behind the people that I loved and cherished. I was stuck, and then I remembered what he had said to me in my first year. He had offered me the chance to see my mother and James again, I didn't know if it was possible but that hope, the hope of seeing them one day was the most powerful and enticing thing that I could ever hope for._

_I decided that my only option was to join him, maybe I could become a spy for the Order like my father (who I sincerely hoped wouldn't hate me for this), and maybe it wouldn't be that bad…_

"_Ok" the word fell from my lips, sealing away my fate with a puff of vapour in the night air._

_The Dark Lord smiled._

"Do you swear to follow my every order, my every wish, and my every command?"

"Yes." I could feel the pain of his wand stabbing into my arm like a knife; I sensed the dark patterns that were leaking out into the layers of my skin as I literally swore my life away to the service of the man I despised, the man who had murdered my mother and her best friend.

Finally the ritual was complete, my arm burned as the mark formed on my skin, I just managed to restrain myself from crying out in pain at the agony it was inflicting.

I rose, joining my place in the circle, trying to avoid the gaze of Severus Snape, my father, who I prayed hadn't recognised me.

"Tonight we welcome back old faces, along with a new recruit…" Voldemort began his welcoming speech as I looked around the circle, spying many familiar faces that I had wished to never see again. As Voldemort's speech went on, and I continued to examine everyone the realisation finally hit me. I was one of them, I was a Death Eater.


End file.
